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Flash's 1965 Ford Thames


Flash

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Got a few minutes in the shed yesterday arvo and spotted a few things that need doing. Looks like the rear indicator lights have been fitted incorrectly. The van looks cross eyed at the moment.

Sun visors are flopping about and only have a single self tapper holding them in. I found the other self tappers in a clearly marked zip lock bag in the box of bits and pieces that came with the van. There must be a reason why these haven't been installed.

Also in the box of spares are the original back bumperettes which I'm keen to fit. Will get on to these when I next get a gap. 

Many other things still to add to the list.

Rear indicator before.jpg

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  • 9 months later...

So wasted a whole heap of time trying to track down a front bowl sump for the 4Y as that is what I need for the Thames. Thought I'd take a short cut to see if I could track down a factory one rather than cutting and glueing a standard sump. Posted on a number of forums including the OS Tech Forum asking if anyone knew what Toyota came out with a front bowl sump on a 2, 3 or 4Y. Eventually tracked down a really knowledgeable chap in Ohio, USA via LinkedIn who had the answer. Turns out that a Toyota forklift model 8FGCU25 has the front bowl sump and oil pickup / pump to match. No chance of getting one at a wreckers as these beasties are fairly thin on the ground and are so hardy you can't kill em. A new sump from Japan will set me back a cool OZ$630 so that is not going to fly. The matching pickup/pump is just over $200 but I'm a bit worried that an oil pump designed to run at a max of 2500 RPM in a forklift might not like running at 4500 RPM in a road vehicle, but maybe I'm just showing my ignorance and some more knowledgeable old schooler will be able to put my mind at ease.

Anyway as far as the sump goes I'm going to go with plan B being cut rotate 180 degrees and re-glue. I've got a mock-up motor so I can afford to sacrifice a sump with out impacting on my runner. I'm just not sure how easy it will be to modify the existing pickup, but I won't know until I drop the pants on the mock up motor. Anyway some pics of sumps and pickups tfor your purving pleasure.

 

Toyota forklift model 8FGCU25 sump.jpeg

Toyota forklift model 8FGCU25 oil pickup.jpeg

4Y oil pump and pickup for standard sump.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Some NOS goodies arrived from the UK today thanks to Sandy from the Thames 400e Owners Club. New tail light lenses with gaskets, new indicator lenses with lamp body gaskets and a locking fuel cap. One of the indicator lenses is a different shade of orange which will drive me insane, but I'll order in another lense with my next batch of parts and hopefully I'll end up with a matching pair.

We are still donkey deep in our house reno, but hopefully I can get a gap to fit these over the next few days. 

Indicator lenses.jpg

Fuel cap.jpg

Tail light lenses.jpg

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As we were having morning smoko the rain started falling, so I saw it as a sign that I should move indoors and steal an hour or two on the Thames. Started off by removing the front indicator lights to install the new lamp to body gaskets. Turns out someone had made their own cork gaskets which was better than finding the lamp body mounted directly onto the paintwork. Installed the new body gaskets, re-fixed the lamp housings and installed the new lenses. I'd made a decision to go with amber lenses up front rather than the original clear lenses. First reason was to give the front a bit of colour as its pretty bland at the moment. Second reason is that I had heard that the clear lenses don't hold up in the harsh OZ sun as well as the amber ones.

Sadly the new fixing screws and rubber sealing rings were inadvertently left out of my parcel so I had to use the old screws. Easy enough to replace when they arrive with my next shipment.

Before and after pics to show the improvement. You can see how badly the clear lens had deteriorated.

Thanks for looking.

RHS front old.jpg

RHS front new.jpg

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Was really nervous that I might damage the paintwork getting it off, but a bit of gentle work with a plastic scraper and a bit of a polish and it came pretty clean. I didn't want to get too aggressive around the mounting holes for fear that the paint might lift, but its way better than it was.

20200118_115040.jpg

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Fitted the new lamp to body gaskets and the new rear indicator lenses and took the opportunity to mount the lamp housings correctly so that the lenses are correctly orientated.

Looks heaps better. Amazing what a difference the little things make.

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20200118_112309.jpg

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Moved on to the rear lights that sit in the lower rear valance. One of the old lenses had a really deep scuff mark in it so I figured it would be worthwhile replacing both sides with new lenses. Pulled the lens off and detached the lamp body from the valance and discovered another home made cork gasket. For some reason the left side rear brake light blows quite often so I thought I would try to figure out what is causing the issue while I have everything apart. The left back light is wired across to the right light and then the wires head off towards the switch mounted up front. Seems weird that only the left hand brake light blows. Might be something in the lamp body or a pinched wire running between the two lights. Will require more investigation. 

Thanks for reading.

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20200118_133301.jpg

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  • 1 month later...

Bit of a milestone today. Finished up the last of my decking just before smoko so with just a few odds and ends left on the house reno front Mrs Flash and I have taken a decision to spend every alternate week working on the van. Started off by pulling the van out of the shed to give the floor a good sweep. Then spent a bit of time taking some reference measurement of the existing front suspension before I start pulling the lot out. Interestingly neither the front wheels nor the back wheels sit in the centre of the wheel arches. Looks a bit odd once you have noticed it. Fronts sit about 50mm towards the front of the arch as shown in a pic of the left hand side front. Right hand side measurements are exactly the same. Not an issue at the current standard road height, but could be an issue once I've fitted the L300 front end which will give me around a 70mm drop. So current thinking is to locate the L300 front beam so that the wheels sit in the centre of the arch.

LHS Front 1.jpg

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